Cape Town: The Libraries creative writing competition hits the home straight. The competition aims at the learners aged between nine to thirteen and fourteen to seventeen. The competition concluded on August 28, 2024.
The budding writers who have not yet submitted their stories were encouraged to submit their stories as soon as possible.
The competition included the assignment, to write a story about an environmental hero, either as a short or long-form story, graphic novel, picture book or novel.
Writing workshops were also held at numerous libraries to assist the learners. The workshops were organised to create the opportunities for learners to acquire writing skills and be better prepared to enter the competition.
According to the reports, there have been 60 entries from 17 libraries. Without any limitations, the stories can be submitted in English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa.
Notably, the winning submissions will be announced at the Open Book Festival on September 07, 2024. The winning stories will either be published, or loaded onto the Library Service’s Libby app.
Many book clubs participated in the competition, including the Boundless Ambitious Bookworms of Mfuleni library, where all the members entered their stories.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Services and Health – Councillor Patricia Van der Ross said that the libraries are constantly devising the new ways of attracting different audiences and providing the opportunities to unlock the potential.
Councillor Patricia added that she wants to applaud them for the writing competition and she hopes to see it grow from strength to strength each year.
“I want to thank the learners who have already made their submissions and encouraged others to get involved before the deadline. This was an amazing opportunity to develop writing skills and possibly earn a reward on a very big stage,” said Van der Ross.
Earlier, The Hout Bay Library celebrated 35 years of the service towards the community, on Wednesday, August 07, 2024. The library has eight dedicated staff members to serve the 1800 registered facility patrons.
Hout Bay has a good track record of services to the community that includes regular storytelling and reading programmes and the literacy programmes at the schools.
The Patrons have access to SmartCape printing and photocopy services. During the month of July, the library’s circulation figures saw 3,682 items booked.